Gift of Ohana
by Siena Christmas
Summary: No one remembers it's Danny's birthday, and Danny doesn't really care. But he would have preferred not to end up in the hospital, today of all days. Danny and Steve whump&bromance


_**Summary**_ _: No one remembers it's Danny's birthday, and Danny doesn't really care. But he would have preferred not to end up in the hospital, today of all days. Danny and Steve whump &bromance_

 _ **A/N:**_ _A very happy fortieth birthday to the one and only Scott Andrew Caan! Here's a story for y'all, featuring Steve and Chin being forgetful, carguments, Danny being touchy, Steve making Faces, and lots of whump!_

 _Also, this story is set sometime in season four. Kono and Adam are in Shenghai; Catherine has gone to work for Billy; Grover and Jerry have yet to come into the picture._

 _For those following All For One, I will update it soon. For some reason, I've been having some technical difficulties (or, as my little sister would say, 'technical diffities') with the story, but for some strange reason, I was able to post this. Sorry for the delay in that story! I'll work on figuring out the problem so I can update again soon._

 _In the meantime, enjoy!_

 ** _GIFT OF OHANA_**

It didn't surprise Danny that Steve had forgotten his birthday.

After all, the navy SEAL had a lot on his mind, between Catherine working with her ex-boyfriend and worrying about Kono.

It didn't surprise Danny that Chin also forgot.

The man was clearly caught up with his concern over his cousin and Adam, and Danny could tell it was killing the Hawaiian to be separated from Kono by such a distance.

Meanwhile, Rachel, Stan, and Grace were in England visiting Rachel's parents, and Danny's daughter had yet to text or call him. Lately, Danny had been feeling distant and sort of shut out from his family, friends, and co-workers.

It didn't really bother him that they had forgotten his birthday...that much. So what if he was turning forty? He kind of wanted to forget it himself. How had time gone by so fast? He was turning into a middle-aged man, and he could not believe it.

"We've got a location on our killer!" cried Steve, suddenly sticking his head into Danny's office. "Chin's already on his way-let's go!"

Instantly, Danny was on his feet, checking to make sure he had his cell. He was positive that someone would come out of the chase injured, and he wanted to be able to call an ambulance. _Not negative_ , he told himself. _Just practical._

That was because Steve McGarrett was a danger magnet, and a fact was a fact.

"Hurry up!" Steve threw over his shoulder, running down the hallway. Danny rolled his eyes and turned his fast walk into a slow jog. "I'm saving my reserves for the foot-chase!" he yelled back.

"What foot-chase?" asked Steve confusedly.

"The one that's inevitably going to happen once we reach our convict! The foot-chase will either follow or precede a shoot-out, and a car chase will also be in there somewhere."

"Hurry up!" Steve shouted again, already out the door. Danny huffed and followed his partner outside.

By the time Danny reached the Camero, Steve was already opening the driver's door, ready to get in.

"Really?" said Danny. "Not gonna let me drive my car today?"

"Why would I?" Steve retorted. "Get in, Danno! If this perp gets away, it'll be on you!"

"On me, seriously?" Danny exclaimed, sliding into the passenger seat and slamming the door. "Why on me? You're the one who's taking forever to start the damn car!"

Steve gave him a Look, then turned the ignition.

In seconds, the sleek black car was zooming down the highway. For the fifth time in an hour, Danny checked his phone for messages or calls from Gracie.

Nothing.

He sighed and pocketed the device.

"What?" asked Steve. "You expecting something?"

"Grace hasn't called since yesterday; she left for England two days ago," Danny answered honestly. He left out the details about his birthday. Steve didn't need to know. Steve had plenty of of other things he needed to worry about; a birthday was not one of them.

"You called Rachel?" said Steve worriedly. He knew how strange it was for Grace to go a single day without talking to her Danno.

"Yeah," replied the detective. "She won't pick up. I've left maybe...twenty-five messages?"

"Okay, just don't panic," said Steve.

"I'm not panicking!"

"I know you, buddy, and you're panicking."

"Am not!"

"Fine, whatever. Touchy today, Danno."

"I'm not touchy!" Danny growled. "And you-you're a really forgetful person."

Steve looked surprised. "Forgetful? You need to polish up your insults, buddy. Forgetful is not something I'll take immediate offence to."

"Well, maybe you should take _mediate_ offence, then," shot back Danny.

"What have I forgotten?" demanded Steve.

"Not telling." Danny smiled. Yes, he knew it was childish, but it caused Steve to take on such a Face that he couldn't resist.

And indeed, the SEAL's expression contorted into a frown so deep it made him look like a demented Muppet.

"Why not?" he cried. "If I'm missing something important, you, as an officer of the law, have an obligation to tell me what it is."

"An obligation?" Danny repeated incredulously. "An obliga-okay, I am not obligated to tell you anything. If it is my business, then it is not yours. My-"

"Is this going to be over anytime soon?" Steve interrupted. "Cuz if not, just lemme go buy some popcorn to watch the show."

"This is just a preview!" exclaimed Danny. "Listen, what I am and what I am not obligated to tell you is a very important topic! If I buy a new shirt, am I obligated to tell you? No! If I get a new girlfriend, am I obligated to let you know? No!"

"Yes, Danny, you are," objected Steve. "Now what's so important about today?" He more pictured than saw Danny roll his eyes. "If the great and mighty Lieutenant Commander Steven J. McGarrett must know, today is my bir-"

Danny was cut off as a large semi truck unexpectedly plowed directly into the Camaro. With a sickening crunch of metal, the smaller car rolled sharply sideways and then came to a rest upside down. Windows shattered, tires screeched, and bodies thumped as the Camero finally came to a halt.

Slowly, albeit surely, Danny clawed his way out of unconsciousness and blinked. Why was he upside down? As he grew more and more aware, he realized that he heard people shouting and screaming. He noticed that he was still buckled into his seat, and with a turn of his head, saw Steve next to him, also strapped in but completely unconscious.

"Steve!" Danny tried to call, but it came out more as a puff of air. It was then that Danny realized how much he _hurt_. His vision was swimming and his head was pounding. It was a struggle to breathe through the horrific pain in his chest. When Danny attempted to move, an awful agony blazed in his side and he just barely bit back a scream. Tears pricked at his eyes, and Danny knew this was bad. His thoughts turned to Steve.

Was he okay?

Biting his lip hard to stop from crying, Danny reached out a trembling arm to place two fingers at his friend's neck. He was beyond relieved when he felt a strong, steady pulse beating beneath his fingertips. His hand dropped to Steve's shoulder.

"Hey, Steve," he breathed. His voice was almost soundless. It was so incredibly hard to catch his breath...

Steve's eyes fluttered open, and he let out a loud groan. Even in intense pain, Danny smiled. "Hey, babe," he whispered quietly. "You okay?"

"Danny?" Steve questioned, a confused expression on his pale face. "What happened?"

"Crash," said Danny as a wave of dizziness and nausea swept over him. "You hurt?"

"Head. Probably a concussion." Steve blinked rapidly as if to clear his vision. "Think my shoulder's dislocated as well."

"It's okay," managed Danny, patting what he hoped to be Steve's uninjured shoulder. "Be fine."

"Danno?" came Steve's voice, suddenly sounding very worried. "Hey, Danny, wake up!"

With a start, Danny opened his eyes and wondered when he'd closed them. "M'okay," he breathed, but couldn't help himself as he felt his eyelids droop down again.

"C'mon, buddy, stay with me!"

Steve was yelling, and Danny found that very rude, because he was trying to sleep here.

"G'way," he mumbled. A pleasing numbness was filling his body, slowly taking away the pain. That was nice.

"DANNY!" shouted Steve again, and Danny's body jolted in pain-Steve had shaken him, the imbecile-and the numbness was gone.

Danny cursed.

"Sorry, partner," said Steve sincerely. "You're not allowed to sleep just yet."

"When?" croaked Danny. Breathing was becoming more and more of an issue.

"Soon," promised Steve. "Just keep your eyes open."

But as much as Danny tried, and as much as he felt bad for letting his friend down, he just couldn't do it anymore and his eyes slipped closed.

Steve watched Danny's body go limp and swore. "Godammit Danny, wake the hell up!"

But this time, no amount of poking, shaking, prodding, coaxing, cajoling, or encouraging would awaken him. With a worried, frustrated huff, Steve gave up trying to wake up Danny and tried to reach his phone. However, when pain rippled through his dislocated shoulder, Steve decided that plenty of onlookers had probably already called 911.

Concerned, he took in his friend's grey-toned skin and sweat-streaked face. A thin line of blood trickled lazily from Danny's lips, and Steve wondered if Chin was outside trying to get them out. Due to his concussion, sounds were distorted, some were missing, some quiet and some loud. It was a confusing jumble of meaningless noise that made Steve's head hurt the more he thought about it. Time was similarly insignificant as Danny sat limply in his seat and Steve's head throbbed and ached.

After every few minutes (or what felt like it, anyway) Steve attempted to wake Danny, each time to no avail. Once or twice, the detective let out an agonized moan, but that did little to comfort Steve as Danny's eyes remained stubbornly shut.

At last, exhausted both physically and mentally, Steve inwardly pleaded, _Please, Chin, get us out of here_ and succumbed to the awaiting darkness.

 ** _5-0-5-0-5-0_**

Brown eyes greeted Danny.

 _Not Steve_ , his mind supplied helpfully.

But then who was it? And where the hell was he?

The face in front of him was blurred and hazy, so Danny couldn't even tell if it was a man or a woman. Above him, the ceiling was white, and he realized he had some sort of machine over his face...an oxygen mask.

 _Hospital_.

Great, so that answered one question. But...

"Who?" he whispered, coughing when his parched throat became irritated.

Without reply, an ice chip was forced gently between his lips, and Danny let out a relieved sigh when the cool chill soothed his dry mouth.

"Who?" he asked again, his question almost impossible to hear.

"Happy birthday, Danno," whispered a small voice.

Almost instantly, Danny's vision sharpened. Not completely, but enough so that he could recognize his beautiful daughter. "Hey, Monkey," he croaked, attempting to sit up.

That was a mistake. Agony swept through him, and Grace pushed him back down. "No, Danno. Lay down," she commanded, fear evident in her voice.

Immediately, Danny felt guilty. "Sorry, Monkey," he mumbled. "I'm just happy to see you. That's all."

Grace worried her bottom lip and held her dad's hand tightly. "Your lung collapsed," she informed him quietly. "And when the rescue crew got you out of the car, you stopped breathing. Uncle Chin had to do it for you."

"You were there? At the accident?" Danny wheezed.

"Mommy and I flew back from England to surprise you for your birthday...I wasn't supposed to call you because it was top secret and I might've given something away. We were on our way to your house when we heard about it on the radio..."

She sniffed as tears began to well up in her eyes.

"Shh, it's okay, Monkey. C'mere." As best as he could, Danny opened his arms for his daughter and kissed her hair when she lay her head down on his chest. It was then that he noticed two other people standing in the doorway.

"Rachel," he acknowledged. "Steven."

"How does this happen, Daniel?" demanded Rachel in a panic-stricken tone, not even saying hello. "How do you almost die on your birthday? Why were you even working?"

"I didn't know," Steve said even as Danny muttered, "I didn't tell anyone."

"Why would you not tell anyone? How could no one know?" Rachel exclaimed tearfully.

Silently, Danny beckoned with his hand, and a moment later Rachel's face was buried in his chest, her body wracked with sobs. At some point, Chin rescued Gracie from the sight of her weeping mother, but Steve remained, standing stoically in the doorway with an apologetic expression.

"I'm sorry," Rachel sighed, brushing tears from her eyes. "I've cried all over you."

A small smile flitted across Danny's face. "S'okay. Anytime."

"Happy late birthday, Daniel," she whispered, planting a gentle kiss on his forehead. Danny was too stunned to ask what she meant by 'late birthday' to ask as she walked out of the room.

"Danny," began Steve when Rachel was gone, "I'm sorry that this happened to you. It was completely my fault. I didn't see the semi truck and apparently he didn't see us, cuz he was stoned. And for me to forget your birthday was...well, I'm not a very good friend. I'm really, really sorry, Danny."

The detective's mouth fell open in shock, and silence filled the room. Danny was touched by Steve's apology. It was sincere and guilt-filled, honest and truthful. Steve was admitting he wasn't perfect, and...were those tears in McGarrett's eyes?

"No waterworks, super SEAL," Danny said with difficulty. "S'all good."

Steve's face cracked into a watery smile, and he seated himself in the plastic chair at his friend's bedside, grasping his hand tightly.

"Don't feel too bad," Danny rasped, returning the light smile.

"I know it was four days ago," began Steve, "but I'd like to-"

"Wait, what?" Danny demanded sharply, eyes widening. "Four days?"

"Yeah, Danno. Today's Friday."

"But...but what happened to Monday?"

"You were old cold that long, buddy. Grace, Rachel, Chin, and I have been here the whole time."

Unexpected tears rose in Danny's eyes at the image of his ohana surrounding his bedside. "You didn't have to do that," he whispered.

Steve nodded. "Oh, yes we did. After forgetting your birthday, it was the least Chin and I could do. Rachel and Grace remembered though, and Kono did too. I was gonna give you this card she sent. It came on Tuesday."

Hands shaking, Danny opened the envelope.

 _Hey Danny! Happy birthday, brah! You better have a good day today! Make sure Steve gives you the day off. Relax with some cold beers and spend some time with Gracie! She loves you so much, and so do I. You are the cornerstone of our ohana; it would fall apart without you. You are a great detective and an amazing friend, and don't you forget it! Again, happy 4-0 to my favorite haole! Love you, brah!_

 _Best wishes, Kono XOXO_

By the end of the note, tears were rolling down Danny's cheeks. He barely had time to wipe them away before Chin strode into the room. "Danny!" he greeted cheerfully. "So good to see you awake!"

"Good to see you, too, brother."

Grinning widely, Chin handed Danny a small piece of paper which looked to be a business card.

"What's this?" he asked. Then, he read the words 'American Deli Express' on it, followed by a hand-written message. _Anytime, my treat. Mahalo for a wonderful friendship. Happy birthday, Danny. -Chin Ho Kelly_

"Oh my god," Danny gasped. "Thanks!"

Chin chuckled. "You're welcome, Danny!"

"And I have something for you, too," smiled Steve. "Actually, it's more of a package."

"Great," said Danny, feeling much better than when he'd first woken up. "What does the McGarrett Celebration Package include?"

"Number One: you get to drive the Camaro."

"Wow. You're giving me my own car?" But Danny was secretly very happy.

"Number Two: I will do the paperwork for an entire month."

"No way!" Danny gasped. Yet Steve was serious.

"Yes way. You do it all the time; now it's my turn. Number Three: I will buy you malasadas and good coffee for a week."

"I love you," said Danny.

"And Number Four: a barbecue at my place this weekend, with yourself as the guest of honor. All you can eat Jersey-style cuisine, buddy."

It took awhile for Danny to process all this, thinking _Man, Steve must be feeling really guilty_. But when he finally took it all in, the tears fell faster and dripped off of his face. "Thank you, Steve," he murmured sincerely. "That really means a lot to me."

"Better than my original birthday surprise of a field trip to Tripler, huh?" said Steve.

Danny chuckled. "Absolutely. C'mere."

With difficulty, he opened his arms wide and embraced both Steve and Chin. "I wish I could send Kono a hug in the mail," sighed Danny.

"I wish that every day," replied Chin.

The three fell into silence, thinking about how so many changes had occurred since their first introductions. And yet those changes had brought them closer together than ever, strengthening their bond as a family.

As Danny began to fall asleep in with his friends protectively standing nearby, Danny knew that the presence of his ohana was the only birthday present he needed.

 ** _THE END_**

 _ **P.S.**_ _Kind of an abrupt ending, sorry about that. Currently, I'm on season four, so that's why Kono's gone and such._

 _Apologies for any mistakes! I scanned it quickly but didn't have time to do my more thorough read-over._

 _Hope you enjoyed! Until next time..._


End file.
